Students from the Bachelor in Psychology are presenting their research activities at the Expra-Kongress on 19 December 2018. In addition to the presentation of students’ research activities, guest lecturer Dr. German Neubaum (University of Duisburg-Essen) will present his research on social networking. In his talk, Dr. Neubaum will show how online networks can influence opinion homogeneity in social media.
Learning how to do scientific research is an important topic in the study programme of the Bachelor in Psychology at the University of Luxembourg. Students learn how to conduct a literature review, how to plan and perform empirical research, and how to present the results of their scientific endeavours. In the Expra congress, students introduce their studies to their fellow students, to the academic staff of the University of Luxembourg, and to the interested general public.
During the winter term 2018-19, students worked on a variety of research topics in the field of psychology that are both fascinating and relevant to the society.
Each year a young but well-established colleague from the diverse fields of psychology is invited to give a guest lecture. Dr Neubaum, head of the junior research group “Digital Citizenship in Network Technologies” (funded by the Ministry of Culture and Science of the German State of North Rhine-Westphalia) at the University of Duisburg-Essen will provide the lecture “Me and my network – we agree! The formation of self-reinforcing networks through a media psychological lens”.
The potential existence of echo chambers in online communication has provoked an intense public discourse about whether digital media use can lead to political polarisation and radicalisation. While initial evidence indicates that echo chambers may not exist to the extent that was suggested by public claims, it remains unclear how people select and form their interpersonal networks online. This question is of pivotal relevance since the ideologies and opinions of users’ online ties inevitably determine the information users are exposed to on social media. Against this backdrop, this presentation offers first theoretical and empirical insights into how interpersonal online networks form and how those can influence the emergence of opinion homogeneity and/or heterogeneity in social media communication.
Dr German Neubaum has an interdisciplinary background in psychology, computer science, and economics and received his PhD in media psychology. His research interests focus on how the use of contemporary social technologies (e.g. social networking sites) influences users’ cognitions, emotions, and actions
Web information for Dr. Neubaum
https://www.uni-due.de/sozialpsychologie/neubaum.shtml
Contact:
Responsible for the organisation of the Expra-Congress:
Deputy course director of the Bachelor in Psychology: Dr. Andreia Costa